


Prince Merlin?

by dnai



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Prince!Merlin, this is a mess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-12
Updated: 2017-03-12
Packaged: 2018-10-03 09:33:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 9,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10241666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dnai/pseuds/dnai
Summary: Merlin receives a letter that informs him that he is heir to the throne of Carlain, and Arthur, upon finding out about Merlin's new status, offers to teach him what it is like to be royalty. Of course, questions are asked, and not always answered in the way Merlin expects.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this almost two years ago, and I found some chapters that I've never posted. Since I will never understand how fanfiction.net works, I figured I would post it here instead. As far as I'm concerned, this is still a work in progress, and updates should be about every two weeks.

"How can this be possible, Gaius?"

"It's entirely possible."

"But how?"

They stared at a letter on the table, trying to make sense of the words on the page.

"Your father is a mysterious man. It doesn't seem that shocking that the last Dragon Lord would be of noble blood."

"And me?"

"You are his son. You would inherit any birthright of his."

"What does it mean for me?"

"We cannot be certain yet."

"That's very helpful."

"I know it's frustrating."

Nearly as soon as Gaius's last word was spoken, they heard a voice outside the chamber door. "Merlin!"

"That would be my destiny calling," Merlin said, and though the statement was not that far from the truth, his voice was full of sarcasm.

Merlin followed the sound of the Prince's voice until he was close enough to say, "Yes, sire?"

"You're late."

"I'm sorry, sire."

"You can think about how sorry you are while you muck out the horses."

Later that night, Merlin returned to Gaius's chambers, where he found Gaius sitting at the table, the letter still in front of him. When Merlin closed the door, Gaius looked up.

"What did the king want?" Gaius asked.

"Nothing important. He just made me muck out the horses again."

Gaius looked visibly relieved, which annoyed Merlin.

"Why is it a good thing that I had to muck out his horses?"

"It means the royal court hasn't gotten word of this!" Gaius brandished the letter in the air.

"Why does it even matter, Gaius? So what if I'm of noble blood?"

"You have been living like a servant for years. With your father's death, you have inherited the throne of Carlain."

"And why would that matter to Arthur. He doesn't know!"

"He is going to learn of your father's death and that you are to inherit the throne. He will hear that you are going to be a king, and he will fear the retribution from how he has treated you."

"Because it's fine to treat a servant like that, but when I suddenly become a prince, he's afraid that 'my' kingdom is going to attack Camelot?"

"It is a resonable fear, Merlin."

"I'm not going to attack Camelot! I've lived here for years! Arthur is my friend!"

"Other people on the court may not see it that way."

"So what am I supposed to do? Give up the throne?"

"Tell Arthur."

"How is that going to help?"

"Hearing it from you may be able to keep the rest of the court from getting involved for a while longer, especially if you ask him not to bring it up with them."

"Should I go now?"

"Yes. Take the letter. I doubt he will take you at your word on something this important."

"Of course."

Merlin took the letter from Gaius, and within seconds, the chamber door was slamming shut behind him. He didn't stop moving until he made it to Arthur's chambers. He knocked on the door and waited until he heard Arthur's voice. "Enter."

Merlin opened the door and walked inside. "What is it, Merlin?"

"Gaius and I recieved a letter that may be of interest to you."

Arthur held out his hand, and Merlin handed him the scroll of rough parchment.

"I'll leave you to it."

Merlin turned to leave the chambers when Arthur said, "Merlin?"

"Yes?"

"I'll call you when I've finished reading it."

"Yes, sire. And I realize that it isn't my place to ask this, but could you not mention the contents of the letter to anyone else?"

"You have my word."

With that, Merlin left Arthur's chambers and returned to his own room, awaiting Arthur's call. Before Arthur did, Gaius knocked on the wooden door.

"Yes?"

"What did he say?"

"He said he would call me when he finished reading it, and he gave his word that he wouldn't mention it to anyone else."

Gaius breathed a sigh of relief and Merlin let out the breath that he hadn't realized he was holding. Gaius thought it was okay. It wasn't going to be a problem.

The relief, however, did not last long. It disappeared with the knock of a guard on Gaius's chamber door, accompanied by the words, "Merlin, the Prince would like to see you."

Merlin walked past Gaius and out the door for the second time that night, and when he arrived at Arthur's chambers, he found the prince pacing aroung the room.

"You wanted to see me?"

"I told you that I would send someone for you when I finished reading the letter. "

"I know."

Arthur didn't seem to know what to say. Eventually, it was Merlin who broke the silence. "You can talk to me, you know. I'm technically still your servant."

"But it seems you're a royal idiot now."

"And you're still a royal prat."

"Do you know who you're talking to?"

"Do you know who you're talking to?"

With Merlin's last comment, Arthur laughed. "I suppose you're right."

"I'm right more often than you might think."

Arthur shrugged. "Actually, there is something I wanted to discuss with you."

"The letter?"

Arthur nodded.

"What about it?"

"I know you've watched how the kingdom works, but I was wondering if you would like me to help you, as far as learning to be a king."

"I'm not going to pretend I know what I'm doing. I could use all the help I can get."

"Don't admit that to anyone outside this room, Merlin."

"Ri-"

Just then, a guard burst through the door and cut Merlin off mid-word. "Sire, you're needed by the court. It is a matter of urgent business."

"Of course."

As soon as the guard left, Arthur said, "Merlin, you should come with me, whatever it's for."

"Why?"

"Am I going to be the one reminding you that you're royalty?"

"But they would find out." Merlin protested, but Arthur just shook his head and opened the door.

"Well, I think they're going to find out regardless. Come on."

"Fine," Merlin said and walked out the door. Arthur smirked.

Arthur followed Merlin out the door, and they arrived in the hall, to see guards with a different seal, unknown to Camelot but known to Carlain.

"My lord," One of the guards bowed, not to Arthur, but to Merlin.

Merlin heard a voice in his ear, and it took him a moment to recognize it as Arthur's.

"You don't have to say anything. They're here to talk to me. They didn't even know you would be here."

Merlin stayed silent, but nodded toward the guard.

The guard spoke again, this time to Arthur.

"We're here because of a matter that you seem to be aware of."

"Only recently."

"Of course, we realize that, which is why a member of our council has come to arrange transport for the young prince. While we're here, we could discuss terms of a peace treaty."

"Of course. I will have someone arrange for guest chambers for you and your men."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

With that, the guards left the room, and Camelot's guards remained. Merlin stood next to Arthur.

"We both know that I'm not ready for this."

"We still have a few days. It will take at least that long to negotiate a peace treaty. I intend to teach you as much as I can in that time."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The writings of 8th grade me continue. The lessons start.

When Merlin finally returned to Gaius's chambers, Gaius immediately asked, "What did Arthur have to say?"

"He offered to teach me about being a king."

"That's good,"

"Are you insulting my abilities?" Even as he said it, Merlin couldn't stop himself from laughing.

"It's good that Arthur didn't immediately tell the court."

"About that... They already know"

"How did they find out?"

"Guards from Carlain arrived to arrange for my transportation."

"So soon?"

"Apparently. They also brought up a peace treaty."

"Well, that's good. We wouldn't want a war, would we?"

"No, we wouldn't."

One of Camelot's guards entered the room and stood there, slightly awkwardly before bowing.

"Uh ...Sire? You are needed in the council room."

"Of course." Merlin's voice felt like it was detached from the rest of him, as if it was someone else's voice speaking his thoughts, with a type of politeness that he hadn't known he was capable of.

In the council room, Merlin saw something that he wasn't expecting. Arthur, alone.

Merlin walked across the room to where he stood and said, "You asked for me?"

"I did. We don't have much time before Carlain's guards are going to want you to leave; you are their leader after all."

"I'm never going to be used to that."

"You will."

"You seem to have more faith in me than usual."

"Shut up, Merlin."

"That sounds more like the Arthur I know."

"You know, I don't have to help you."

"But you want to. You wouldn't have offered otherwise."

"Have I mentioned how much I hate it when you're right?"

The next three hours were spent with Arthur going over lists and lists of things, and Merlin repeating them until he could say most of them from memory without getting a single word wrong. By the end of Merlin's "lesson", Arthur looked quite pleased, Merlin quite tired.

"Did you want to go on?" It was the first time that Arthur had ever actually asked for Merlin's opinion, and in return, it was the first time that Merlin had given Arthur an answer that was noncommital.

"You look tired. We'll continue tommorow." Arthur's tone was decisive.

Merlin had never heard anything come out of Arthur's mouth that had even come close to caring, but there was no mistaking Arthur's tone. He was trying to make sure that Merlin didn't overwork himself. He was trying to look out for him.

This simple realization confused Merlin more than he would have expected. Why did Arthur care now? Why was it so important that Arthur be the one to teach him about these things?

When he returned to his room, Gaius was already asleep. Merlin was glad. He wasn't sure that Gaius would be able to answer his questions, and he wasn't in the mood to hear the regretful tone that Gaius always used when he couldn't give Merlin the information that he wanted.

He collapsed on his bed and immediately fell asleep.

The morning brought another lesson from Arthur. Merlin was expecting more memorizing, but Arthur had other ideas. He brought Merlin to the area where the knights spent their days training. He picked up one of the lighter swords and handed it to Merlin. To Merlin's surprise, the grip seemed to have been made for his fingers.

Arthur, on the other hand, didn't look surprised.

"Why do you have a sword that fits my hand?"

"Believe it or not, Merlin, you're not the only person of your size that needs to hold a sword."

"Right."

That was the last word that Merlin spoke until the sun went down. He practiced several aspects of swordfighting, until Arthur told him, "Now, you should practice against a real opponent."

Merlin stared. He couldn't have meant Arthur. But there was no one else around.

Merlin nodded and resigned himself to his fate.

The fight lasted longer than Arthur would have expected, and ended rather differently. Merlin's skills seemed to have developed quickly, as after about ten minutes of fighting, Merlin had knocked Arthur's sword from his hand, and within seconds had the blade against his throat. Merlin drove the sword into the ground next to Arthur, then extended a hand to help him to his feet.

"Are you sure that you need these lessons? You seem to be doing pretty well."

Merlin was surprised that Arthur wasn't even slightly angered by Merlin's victory.

"I still have no idea what it's like to be king."

"That's next."

Merlin could have sworn he saw Arthur smile.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I think I described this one as "cuteness and sassy Merlin" in 8th grade. Do with that what you will.

Merlin was sick of memorizing things, but he figured that Arthur knew what he was doing. They had gone over court proceedings, responsibilities of a king, how to respond to challenges, how to issue challenges.

When Arthur was satisfied, Merlin felt like he was ready to collapse.

"We'll finish this after dinner."

Merlin was tempted to ask what more he had to learn, but he wasn't sure he wanted to know. He knew that he had about twenty-four hours before he was going to have to sign a peace treaty, return to Carlain, or both. From the way Arthur spoke, he figured there was a whole other side of being king that they hadn't even come close to covering.

Turned out, he was right. Arthur had told him about court proceedings, how one dealt with those who broke the law, and several other boring but necessary topics, but they hadn't even touched on how a king was supposed to behave in everyday life.

"Once we finish with this, I think we're finished with everything."

Merlin didn't think Arthur knew how glad he was to hear those words. He had to be ready by the morning, and thanks to Arthur, he actually stood a chance.

The "lesson" consisted mostly of Arthur saying different things to Merlin, as different people in his kingdom might, and Merlin would respond. If he got the response wrong, Arthur would correct him, they would try a similar situation, and once Merlin had it down, they would go to the next one. Several scenarios later, Arthur broke the pattern.

"There are a few more things that you need to learn about, and we can't really use the scenarios."

"Such as...?" Merlin was starting to sound more like a king, and less... like himself, he realized with a jolt

"Who it is appropriate to interact with, and in what ways. A king can interact with his people in order to keep tabs on the morale of the kingdom as a whole, he can speak to servants about things pertaining to their jobs. Friendships with personal servants are quite common, but relationships with anyone not of noble blood are almost always out of the question."

"Relationships?"

"Yes, Merlin, relationships. Not that I expect you to find yourself needing that information any time soon."

"That's reassuring."

Arthur and Merlin both laughed at Merlin's response. When the laughter died down, it left a silence that Merlin was unsure of whether to fill.

It was finally Arthur that did.

"You know why I'm doing this, don't you?"

"To avoid a war?"

"You really are an idiot. I'm doing this because you're my friend, Merlin."

"This still seems like a lot of effort for a friend."

"Good thing we've nearly finished, then. Because you're beginning to irritate me again."

"What's left?"

"Just any questions that you might have."

"Who counts as noble blood?"

"Someone directly related to a king or queen."

"What counts as directly related?"

"Merlin!"

"Sorry."

"I forgot that you were a servant a few days ago. I can't expect you to know all of this within three days."

"But the knights that want me to go with them tomorrow can."

'They can, but they shouldn't."

"And why shouldn't they?"

"They need a king. They aren't going to get a king if they take someone who was a servant three days ago and not teach him anything!"

"They seem to be perfectly fine with it."

"No one likes having a temporary ruler. It makes the kingdom fragile and difficult to defend. They want someone with a birthright to the throne so that they can rule for their entire life."

"Oh that makes sense, but what were you trying to teach me first?"

"You don't listen do you Merlin?"

"Of course I always listen when you're speaking. Your royal pratness."

"Merlin do you know who you're speaking to?"

"Yes, but do you know who you are speaking to? Go on telling me about relationships."

"You actually did remember what I was telling you about,"

"It's hard to forget the things that you tell me."

Arthur smiled before reaching out and pulling Merlin into a kiss.

It took Merlin about five seconds for the shock to wear off, then he gave in and returned the kiss. It was softer than Merlin would have thought (not that he thought about that), but sweet all the same. They only broke apart when they heard a knock. Arthur shot

the door a reproachful look before saying "Enter."

"Sire I, um- just came to say that I will be taking over as your servant since your last one is now a prince."

"Alright. I was just showing Merlin the ropes, considering he has been my servant for some time now."

"Of course. I will wait for you in your chambers."

"Thank you."

As soon as the door closed, Arthur turned back to Merlin and said, "I forgot, what were we talking about?"

"Our relationship, of course."

"Are you sure? Because I don't remember much talking."

"Our relationship so far doesn't need much talking."

"That is a statement that I agree with."

This time it was Merlin who pulled Arthur into a kiss.

Arthur didn't need any time for the shock to wear off, they just started again, right where they left off, this time without any interruptions.

Merlin couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed when he returned to his room that night; he had been hoping to spend more time with Arthur, even if it was just memorizing things.

He was also hoping to find Gaius sleeping. After all, it well past sundown. However, to Merlin's dismay, Gauis was waiting for him.

"Arthur was teaching you all day? How much can you learn in a day?" Gauis seemed genuinely curious.

"We only have a day or two until the treaty is finished and the guards take me back to Carlain. I have a lot to learn."

"I'm not going to argue with you there. When you came from Ealdor, you nearly got yourself arrested within a day."

Merlin laughed, remembering how he had almost attacked Arthur, then quieted down, remembering more recent events.

"Merlin?"

"Sorry. What?"

"I asked if you were all right."

"Oh. Yes. Just tired. "

"You should get to bed."

"Goodnight."

Merlin didn't say another word; he actually was quite tired. He fell asleep almost instantly, dreading the time that he would have to leave Camelot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's an author's note from when I originally posted this is 2015  
> (A/N: i apologize if any of you woke up your parents squealing like my friend did when she proofread it for me.)


	4. Chapter 4

Merlin woke up far earlier than he would have liked. He opened his eyes and immediately shut them as the sun assaulted him. He couldn't remember how long he had left in Camelot.

What he did know was that the treaty was going to be signed, and that when it was, he was leaving Camelot to rule his own kingdom.

Why did he have to go?

He didn't want to leave the comfort of sleep, but he did want to talk to Arthur. They only had a day or so left, and he wasn't sure if they had finished with his "lessons". He still called them lessons, because he didn't know the word for "I randomly became a prince and now Prince Arthur is teaching me how to not screw it up".

In all of the chaos of the last three days, Merlin had almost forgotten what being Arthur's servant had been like. He remembered things about him, but lately , they had nothing to do with being his servant.

Lately, he remembered the kiss, the first one far more vivid than the second. The first few seconds of shock, followed by the feeling that something had been missing, and he hadn't noticed its absence until it had been returned. He remembered the look of annoyance that Arthur had shot the door when they had been interrupted, and how eager they had both been to continue.

In short, he remembered Arthur as the one person that had ever been able to actually make him feel happy. Like the second side of the same coin, just as Kilgharrah had said.

These memories were interrupted, just as that first kiss had been, by a knock on the door.

This time, however, it was Gaius. "Merlin?"

"Yes?"

"The prince wants to see you."

Gaius couldn't have understood Merlin's eagerness to report to the prince, but fortunately, he didn't seem to have noticed. Merlin rushed through the castle's halls, and stopped outside Arthur's chambers. Another knock. He could still imagine Arthur's scowl.

That, however, was not the look that greeted him.

A smile.

When Merlin heard the familiar command to enter the room, he was not expecting to hear a tone of voice that suggested that Arthur had been smiling the entire time.

When he actually opened the door, he was not disappointed. He saw Arthur, happier than he ever remembered... except for one time.

One moment, the night before. He had seen this look on the Prince's face once before, but the memory was largely obscured by shock. Somehow, Merlin knew that he was the only person that Arthur had ever fixed with this particular stare.

"What do you need, sire?" Merlin could hardly say the sentence without laughing.

"You really are an idiot, aren't you?"

"You're never going to stop calling me that, are you?"

"Why? Does it bother you that much?"

Merlin pretended to consider for a moment. "No."

"Good."

"Now, seriously, what did you want?"

"Well, I suppose there isn't a chance that I would call you up here for no reason."

"I wouldn't put it past you."

Arthur laughed. "Of course you wouldn't"

Merlin smiled. He had known Arthur for years, but he was only now learning about the side of him that took Merlin's smile as an invitation for a kiss.

The kiss didn't shock Merlin this time, but he could still feel electricity running through him. In the back of his mind, he knew that Arthur had reponsibilities to deal with very soon, if not right then. But at the front of his mind were Arthur's lips and a wish- a wish for the moment to never end.

Unfortunately, it did end, and it ended on his terms. He pulled back, and was immediately hit with another of Arthur's looks that only the prince could fix him with, begging him to continue. He was very tempted to oblige, but instead whispered, "The king will be expecting you, won't he?"

Arthur sighed. "I have mentioned that I hate it when you're right, haven't I?'

Merlin replied, "You have, and I agree. The thing's that I'm right about are normally quite infuriating."

Merlin's comment forced a smile from Arthur, who said, "You should come with me. For practice, of course."

"Of course, my lord." That comment coaxed a laugh from the prince.

When they arrived in the great hall, Arthur addressed his father. He had been away from the castle for several days, investigting alleged witchcraft and needed to be updated on the events of the time he had been absent. That responsibility fell to Arthur.

Arthur told him of the peace negotiations with Carlain, and the reason that they were necessary. Merlin noticed that Arthur had left out a few of the details, but he wouldn't have volunteered them either.

When Uther dismissed Arthur wil hardly a nod towards Merlin, he figured that it was a good enough indication of Uther's attitidue towards him: completely unchanged. He didn't particularly care, still being used to the life of a servant. It still felt conpletely foreign to fear himself reffered to as a prince, a king, or any sort of nobility.

There was also the matter of being able to follow Arthur out of the great hall without being regarded as suspicious.

As soon as they returned to Arthur's chambers, Merlin nearly tackled Arthur, not that Arthur was putting up much of a fight. Merlin hadn't been the only one that had been not so patiently waiting to resume the kissing. At any rate, neither of them were complaining.

They had no reason to waste the last of Merlin's time in Camelot. That time, as they both knew, was quickly drawing to a close.

Merlin, once again, was the one that had to point out that he could no longer stay in Arthur's chambers for extended periods of time, as he was no longer Arthur's servant.

"Fine, but no leaving for Carlain without saying goodbye. I forbid it."

"Of course not, sire."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read, commented, or left kudos on this story today, it's been amazing to see the response my writing has gotten over such a short time!


	5. Chapter 5

After Merlin left Arthur for what was likely to be the second to last time, he was, quite understandably, irritated with nearly everything that interacted with him. The only person that he really wanted to speak to was Arthur, and that was only because there was never a time that he didn't want to speak to him. This foul mood extended to his attitude towards Gaius, who was thankfully too absorbed in his work to notice that anything was off about Merlin's behavior. Merlin probably would have snapped at him if he had asked anything about Arthur. That was a bit of a sensitive topic.

Merlin, however, was extremely relieved that he didn't encounter any of Carlain's knights, as he didn't think he could stand them calling him 'my lord' at the moment. He strongly suspected that an encounter with one of them would end with someone getting run through, and as Merlin had managed to defeat Arthur Pendragon, he didn't think it was likely for that person to be him. Regardless with his irritation at the knights, he didn't want to start his reign by killing his knights. Artuhr hadn't explictly told him so, but that was a part of being a king that Merlin thought he could figure out on his own.

He finally collapsed on his bed, almost daring to hope that dusk would come before anyone would disturb him. He was right, and as had become custom when that happened, it was utterly infuriating.

When Gauis finally did knock on the door, Merlin was no less irritable than he had been when he had first taken up his position on the bed, thouroughly annoyed by everyone and everything around him.

He rose when he heard the knock, just hoping that the knights hadn't arrived. Fortunately (for once), it was only Gaius. After Merlin opened the door, Gaius asked, "Are you ready?"

"Probably not, but I don't think I'm going to get any more prepared."

"I'm afraid that's likely to be true. How did the lessons with Arthur go? I've been meaning to ask."

"They've gone surprisingly well, considering how much of a prat he is," Merlin said, biting back a very different reply.

"You're going to have to see him again, you know. Treaties like the one you're likely to be signing tomorrow are the beginnings of close relations between two kingdoms."

"That shouldn't be a problem. I wouldn't want to leave my friends behind, not after all of this."

"Friends? I wasn't under the impression that you'd manged to make any friends."

"Gwen, at the very least, and possibly even Arthur."

"Now, why on Earth would you want to visit Arthur?"

"He just spent the last three days teaching me everything I know about royalty. I figure I at least owe him a visit or two." Merlin was hoping that he wasn't blushing. Damn it, Arthur. Why do you have to do this to me?

If he was, Gaius either didn't notice or didn't say anything. Merlin sincerely hoped that it was the former; he wasn't exactly sure what he felt for Arthur, and he didn't want people to learn of it then leave Arthur to deal with the backlash. Whatever his feelings toward Camelot's crown prince, he didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble for the kingdom in which he had lived for years.

He knew that those years were about to come to an end, and that did nothing except amplify his feelings for the second place, after Ealdor, that he had been able to call home. Where he had friends and a job, somewhere to stay, and the closest thing to a father that he would ever know. He was reluctant to leave, but he knew that if he didn't leave Camelot willingly, the kingdom could very well find itself under siege from Carlain's knights. They would not take kindly to their king remaining in a different kingdom.

Too soon, far too soon, a knight came to Gaius's chamber to summon him to the great hall. He supposed that the treaty was finished, and needed to be signed. Merlin didn't want to think about what would happen almost directly after that.

He knew that he didn't have much of a choice in the matter; he was already starting to feel some of the pressure that Arthur had described: the feeling that the entire world was depending on you, having to think out every action and how it might affect everyone in the kingdom, trying to keep tabs on people's moods, seeing if they were happy. It was a lot for Merlin to learn in three days. He knew that, Arthur knew that, but neither of them were sure that the knights of Carlain actually knew that.

Everyone in the room except for Uther and Arthur bowed when Merlin entered the room, and as they prepared to sign the treaty, Arthur stood behind Merlin's chair, willing him to remember all of the information from the lessons.

Arthur's presence behind him slowed Merlin's heartrate, but only slightly, from a panicked, almost frantic beating, to the steady, but fast pace that Merlin knew came not from nerves, but from being next to Arthur again. He was just angry that what might be their last meeting wasn't private enough to kiss him. Of course, less than a foot away, the other prince was thinking exactly the same thing.

Arthur was barely paying attention to the treaty, instead choosing to take the time to memorize Merlin's features, the look on his face as he concentrated, and added it to the knowledge that he had gathered about Merlin, not over days, but over years. Years of watching his frustrated as he tried to make a point that it wasn't his place to make. The look of shock, quickly replaced by happiness, that Arthur had only seen about two days previously. However, Arthur's favorite by far was the look that Merlin gave him when he was certain that no one was watching, the look that told Arthur beyond a shadow of a doubt that the feelings he had for the dark-haired prince were very much reciprocated.

When Merlin stood, Arthur was snapped from his thoughts by a new look, a look that told Arthur two things: That Merlin was concerned, and that he wanted to be alone, though Arthur wasn't entirely sure if he was invited.

A nod from Merlin changed that, and the two of them left the room. Merlin spoke first.

"You told me I wasn't allowed to leave without saying a proper goodbye."

Arthur rightly took that as an invitation to kiss him, and he did.

"This might be the last time I ever get to do that." He felt that the words needed to be said, though he personally had absolutely no desire to be saying them.

Merlin was not going to be the first one to say it- he refused. Finally, Arthur pulled him into another kiss. Merlin looked at him with an expression of curiosity, and Arthur suddenly felt the need to defend his actions. "You know, I do enjoy that. I wouldn't want to miss another golden oppotunity."

"Good, because I wouldn't want you to."

"I hate goodbyes."

Merlin looked at him for a moment before replying, "I do too. I'm just hoping that this won't end up being our last one."

"We can hope."


	6. Chapter 6

When Merlin left, alone, he was quickly joined by Gwaine.

"Arthur thought it might help to have someone you knew helping you out for a while."

"Thanks, Gwaine."

"Merlin, I hope you don't take everything Arthur has said to heart. As much as you know I hate to say it," Gwaine said with a laugh, "the princess is capable of being wrong."

Merlin couldn't help but laugh at that. He was pretty sure that Gwaine was one of his only friends capable of lifting his rapidly deteriorating mood. He also was pretty sure that Gwaine had at least a bit of an idea of what had been going on in the random room that he and Arthur had said their goodbyes in.

They walked in silence after that, each of them wrapped in their own thoughts. When they reached the doors that led to the citadel, they were greeted by two of Carlain's knights, who immediately accepted Merlin's decision to bring Gwaine with him. It seemed that the knights might not be the worst people to be interacting with after all. All of the confusion of the last few days had made it nearly impossible for Merlin to get his head around the idea that he would be ruling his own kingdom in less than two days' time.

They took horses, a fact for which Merlin was grateful. He was glad to be in the open, despite the security risks. The knights insisted on surrounding him in a defensive formation, even after he explained to them that no one even knew what he looked like, along with the fact that he wasn't wearing the royal seal of Carlain. He was still wearing his servant's clothes, except for the shirt, which the knights had insisted on replacing for him.

He didn't really mind the servant's clothes, and he didn't exactly look forward to wearing armor, issuing orders, and having a servant. It wasn't right. The fact that he was even in Camelot hadn't been much more than a fluke; he could have just as easily spent his entire life in Ealdor. But due to a second twist of fate, he was going to spend it ruling Carlain. He was sure Gwaine could see the complexity of his thoughts on his face, although he knew that Arthur would know the look better than Gwaine did; he had worn the exact same look several times over the course of the lessons. Lessons that Merlin wasn't entirely sure he would be following.

Especially Camelot's rules regarding magic. He wasn't about follow the rules of Uther's kingdom on that particular subject. Apparently his expression had changed, as Gwaine asked him, "Something wrong?"

"Not exactly. It's just a lot to take in. I've always been more used to following orders than making them."

"I don't blame you. It is a big change, going from servant to royalty, and it may very well be a situation unique to you."

"That's encouraging."

"It wasn't exactly meant to be encouraging. It was meant as something along the lines of sympathy."

"You know, I'm not going to outright reject sympathy. I'm not Arthur."

"That's true. Sometimes I forget that the two of you are separate people."

Merlin wasn't sure what that meant, but laughed anyway. "I've been his servant for years. I just hope his arrogance hasn't rubbed off on me."

"I'm fairly sure it hasn't. Though I'm not entirely sure that it's possible for anyone but Arthur to have Arthur's arrogance."

"It might be possible for you."

"Highly unlikely, your highness."

"Would you stop that?"

Gwaine pretended to think for a moment. "No, I don't think I will, your highness."

The mocking tone that he used made the title that much worse. Merlin sighed. He was never going to get used to this. Maybe it was a mistake...

"Gwaine!"

The knight responded by putting on a false look of complete innocence that Merlin knew would have enraged Arthur. Merlin, however, simply laughed. Gwaine seemed slightly taken back by Merlin's response. "I'm going to go with, no, you are nothing like Arthur."

"I'm going to assume that that's a good thing."

"I think we'll have to wait and see."

Gwaine and Merlin hadn't noticed much about their surroundings over the course of their conversation, but as they came up upon a town, Merlin thought it looked quite familiar.

"Ealdor!" He whispered to Gwaine.

One of the knights said to Merlin, "We're about a day's journey away from the kingdom. We can either ride through the night or make camp here. Your call."

"We shouldn't risk fatigue. We can rest here for a few hours."

"Shouldn't we find somewhere outside the village to make camp?"

"You found me in Camelot, but I originally come from Ealdor," Merlin said, gesturing to the village in front of them. "I'd like to at least say hello to my mother."

"Of course, my lord."

Merlin gave an inward sigh. He didn't like the term "my lord" any more than he liked the term "your highness." Neither of them felt right. Looking at himself as royalty felt foreign and wrong.

Stopping in Ealdor, however, made him feel the most at home he had been since moving to Camelot.

And just a few other times, the voice in his head reminded him.

Alright, just a few other times.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In rereading this story (and the author notes that i wrote back when i started it), I've been feeling a lot of nostalgia towards both my time watching Merlin and the time I was posting this. I'd almost forgotten that the reason I left this story alone for so long wasn't that I wasn't interested anymore, but that I started working on a new fic and didn't have time to write both. It's really interesting to think about how I see the two stories as being from two totally different points in my writing career, yet they were written during the same summer.


	7. Chapter 7

Seeing Ealdor again only reminded Merlin of the day he had left for Camelot.

And the day he met Arthur.

Seeing the familiar people made him want to scream. He could almost hear Arthur's voice, telling him to keep that particular feeling hidden. He could also hear his own voice. He could hear his voice responding to Arthur's. I'm allowed to miss you, and I'll be damned if I have to keep that a secret.

Merlin hated being right, almost as much as he hated having to leave Arthur.

When he finally saw his mother, he sighed in relief. She was the only person that he felt like dealing with at the moment.

"Merlin! What are you doing here?"

It took Merlin nearly an hour to fill his mother in on the events of the last week, and during that time, she didn't say a word. He knew that it would have taken well over an hour if he included the events that had caused him to feel so conflicted, but something told him that Arthur would not appreciate people knowing about them, at least not yet.

When he had finished, his mother seemed to be speechless. She finally wrapped him in her arms and whispered, "You'll make an excellent king."

Could you tell Arthur that?

Merlin had already forgotten half of the court proceedings. Not that he really cared.

When morning arrived in Camelot, Arthur did not want to get up and face the fact that Merlin would not be waiting for him. He wanted to be exasperated when Merlin messed something up, and he wanted to be unable to stay angry at him. He did not want to face the servant that he had only met once after a rude interruption, and to make things worse, his new servant didn't know of anything that was going on. He was clueless, but Arthur had to deal with him, however much he didn't want to.

He sighed and left the confort of his bed. He looked around, and at first, he didn't see anyone. He noticed a plate on the table, but other than that, he didn't see anything else disturbed. For a fraction of a second, he felt pleasant surprise, but it didn't take long for the feeling of dread and longing to return. Merlin wouldn't have done this. That meant that Merlin wasn't there.

Of course Merlin wouldn't have done this. He was royalty, just like Arthur. Arthur couldn't help but laugh at the thought of himself attempting to do Merlin's old job. No wonder he was such a terrible servant.

Arthur wondered how far Merlin and Gwaine had gotten. He didn't want to have to wonder where Merlin was. He wanted him to be back in Camelot.

Of course, that probably would not be happening for quite a while. After all, they both had kingdoms to run. All of these thoughts were just making it harder to leave his chambers.

He knew that he would be forced to leave eventually. He just didn't realize just how soon that would be.

Merlin's arrival in Carlain, of course, was to be celebrated with a feast. It didn't really matter that the king was not in the mood to celebrate. He might have been, if there was one specific person joining the festivities. But, as he was not there, Merlin didn't really feel like doing much. He just wanted to find whichever room was his and fall asleep.

Arthur didn't really feel like answering his father's summons to the Great Hall, but, of course, he didn't have much of a choice. He walked to the Great Hall, the new servant, whose name he had still not bothered to learn, trailing behind him.

When he finally arrived in the Hall, his father delivered some startling news that it took Arthur a moment to work through.

An arranged marriage?

He just nodded, not really registering what his father was saying. He didn't care about the kingdom that the unknown princess came from. He didn't care that he was going to be marrying someone that he didn't know yet. He didn't care about anything; he was too distracted. Arthur still wasn't paying attention when a guard burst through the door and said, "Urgent message from the kingdom of Dwend."

During the celebrations, Merlin was similarly distracted. He couldn't help but feel like the entire atmosphere felt forced, but that might have just been the fact that he was the only one that felt Arthur's absence. Gwaine looked unconfortable, but Merlin didn't exactly blame him. He was a knight of Camelot, sitting at a table with the king of Carlain, in a castle that was nothing like his own. Merlin could relate to the out-of-place feeling that the castle surely gave Gwaine. Having lived in Camelot for years, Merlin was not eager to have to get to know another castle.

More than anything, Merlin wanted to be back in Camelot. He wouldn't have cared if Arthur made him muck out the horses for the next week. It would have been familiar, and Merlin wasn't sure he was ready for a change.

Arthur looked up when the guard announced the message. He regonized the name, and with a slight jolt, realized that it was the kingdom that his new fiancée came from.

Uther was looking at the guard with thinly veiled concern. "What message does Dwend wish to be delivered?" Arthur could tell that Uther was wondering if the king and queen had decided that they wanted to call off the wedding.

"The princess was attacked several hours ago, and it is not likely that she will surivive. The king and queen suspect that magic was involved in their daughter's attack."

"Sorcery?!" Uther's rage was not as easily concealed, and was almost comical.

Arthur, however, was attempting to conceal a feeling of elation mixed with happiness. A girl was dead- he shouldn't be happy. But he was. He was glad that he wasn't going to be forced into a marriage with this princess that he did not know. He knew that there was still a chance for it to happen, but in his experience, murder attempts involving magic had a very high success rate.

Within hours, Arthur, Gaius, and several knights were traveling to the kingdom of Dwend, where the princess would be waiting for them. It was only appropriate for her future husband and his physician to see to it that she had everything she needed, though Arthur was sure that Gaius was going to try to save her; why wouldn't he?

When they finally arrived, Arthur was led to the room where the princess was on the bed, very pale, and seemingly getting paler as Arthur watched. Though he felt exactly nothing for this girl, he took up his place beside her bed. She wasn't the one that arranged their marriage. For all he knew, she had someone else. Regardless, the girl was dying, and Arthur didn't feel right leaving her alone.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get our first glimpse of Merlin as a king.

Merlin sat in his chambers for over an hour before he had the courage to go and sit in the throne room. Arthur's lessons ran through his head, but so did the memories of the decisions Uther had made following exactly the same rules. He wasn't going to create a kingdom in that way. 

His first order of business: introducing himself. He wasn't used to not having to do things himself, but he was glad to not have to go through the entire castle that he was still unfamiliar with in order to gather the guards. He simply told his servant, "Tell two guards to inform two others of this order, then report to me. We should have everyone within the hour." 

The servant darted off to find the nearest guards, then led Merlin back to the Great Hall. Merlin seemed to surprise his servant by saying, "Thank you, I don't think your services will be required for the next few hours at least. Feel free to use your free time however you see fit." 

His servant darted off, and he realized that he didn't even know his name. He thought about calling after him, but decided not to. He didn't want him to waste the precious hours that he had been given. Merlin had plenty of time to learn his name. 

When all of his guards and knights had arrived, they all knelt before him. Merlin, clearly uncomfortable said, "You may rise. I am not addressing you as your king today. I simply mean to introduce myself. You needn't be worried about the proper form at the moment." 

"My name is Merlin Emrys, and until about a week ago, I was not aware Carlain's existence, let alone my part in it. When I received your letter, I had been working as a servant to Prince Arthur of Camelot. I was there for years after I left Ealdor, the village where I was raised. The simple reasoning for this was that my mother feared my abilities and wanted me to learn to control them. I saved the prince, and was rewarded with a position as his servant. Over the years, I began to learn a bit of royal policy, but I still did not know enough to be king. In the three days following the arrival of the letter, Arthur taught me more about the inner workings of Camelot than I care to know. I intend to build on these policies, but I would like everyone to know that if they wish to speak to me, they do not need to go through traditional means. I am a person. I have only been king for about a day, and I don't want to put anyone through any unnecessary trouble; I find that direct communication is easier. I have one more thing that I would like to show you." 

Merlin muttered an incantation, and a sword slowly floated from one end of the room to its place at the side of Merlin's throne. 

"I have magic. I was born with it, and the reason I went to Camelot was to control it. I have no intention to continue with the attitudes towards magic that Arthur taught me, so if you are capable of such things, I only have one warning. Magic is very easy to use for evil, and if you do so, I do not care about who you are or what you mean to the kingdom. People have gotten away with far too much, and also have been given far worse punishments than their crimes deserved. I don't want to continue this, and I hope that everyone knows that I intend to not only be your king; I intend to be your friend."

The guards were silent for a moment, then one said, "I am honored to have you as my friend." 

Merlin smiled. Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as he thought. 

"You can go now. I just wanted to introduce myself. Feel free to do the same before you return to your posts."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I said when I posted the first chapter that I was aiming for one chapter about every two weeks, but clearly, that's not the same thing as 8 chapters in one day. Right now, I'm posting all of the chapters that I wrote from April to June of 2015, and new chapters from right here in 2017 should start heading your way in a week or two. Thank you again to everyone who's reading and enjoying this story, and I love hearing your thoughts on it, so don't be shy about calmly telling me how you feel (or yelling about it; either works).


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to Arthur's situation for this one. Enjoy!

Arthur stayed by the princess's side that entire night. He still felt terrible about his happiness upon finding out about her attack, and even though she didn't know about it, he still felt a need to make it up to her, especially considering the circumstances. 

Her breathing was steady, but shallow. Arthur wasn't sure whether to be happy that she was still breathing, or annoyed that she was still going to marry him at this point. He also wasn't sure what he was supposed to do as he sat at her bedside. Talk to her? They hadn't properly met. Kiss her? How was that fair to her when she wouldn't remember it? Eventually he settled for simply holding her hand. 

Her eyes remained closed for hours, and Arthur watched her. As much as he didn't want to be engaged to her, he was still upset. As the hours marched by, he found himself hoping that she would survive, even if that meant that he would be forced to marry her. He didn't think it was his place to wish death on a girl that looked to be younger than he was for his own happiness. What he really wanted was for the wedding to be called off, but for Katarina to survive. 

He hardly noticed when Gaius came in; he was too wrapped up in thoughts of Katarina and a wedding, and Merlin- wondering where he was and how his first day being king had gone. What he wanted more than anything was another chance to speak to Merlin.

"Sire?" 

"Yes?"

"I'm going to need some space to attempt to heal her." 

"Thank you, Gaius," Arthur started to back out of the room. 

He started to wander through the castle, being sure to stay close to Katarina's chamber, and trying to figure out his emotions. Somehow, Merlin kept crossing his mind. 

He was quickly snapped from his thoughts by a pair of voices speaking in Katarina's room. No one else had been there except for Gaius and himself... 

And Katarina. 

Arthur rushed back to the room, though it didn't take very long, and took three seconds to compose himself before reentering the room. 

He bowed, before saying, "My lady." 

Katarina laughed, then winced. "There's no need to call me that." 

Arthur was taken aback by this request, but honored it all the same. "What should I call you, then?" 

"Katarina will be fine." 

"Okay. So, Katarina, I take it you're feeling better." 

"I wish I could say I was. I think I preferred unconsciousness, if I'm being completely honest with myself." 

"I'm sorry to hear that, Katarina."

Arthur noticed that Gaius had left the room. 

"I'm personally just hoping that I make it through the next few days." 

"Why only the next few days?" 

Katarina hesitated. "I don't like being told what to do, and it seems that's all being a princess is. I fear that when I take the throne, my husband will continue that trend. I also don't like being told who to marry. Though I'm sure you're very kind," she added hastily. 

"It's all right, Katarina. This entire thing is a mistake in my opinion. You should marry someone that you love, not someone that other people think will be good for your kingdom."

Katarina's voice suddenly sounded weak. "I hope you mean that, Arthur." As she said it, Arthur could hear Katarina's voice fading as the life drained from her face. 

"Gaius!" It was no use. Katarina was still, and her breathing had stopped. Whatever had happened, it was over. 

Gaius came rushing back into the room and attempted to revive Katarina, but it wasn't going well. Her eyes had fluttered shut, and she looked peaceful, as if she were simply sleeping. 

Arthur knew better. The fading of her voice had not been that of a girl falling asleep. That type of fading was reserved for the last words of a dying girl. 

"How old was she?" 

"My best guess is that she is around eighteen." 

"We have to find the person that did this, Gaius. No one should run free after this."

"I do have good news." 

"And what could that possibly be?" 

"The magic was done very crudely. It should not be difficult to trace."

"Do we know where it was performed?" 

"It seems that we may need to pay Merlin a visit. This magic was done in Carlain. By someone very powerful."

"And Merlin's just going to let us go on a witch hunt through his kingdom?" 

"He may insist on helping. As intent as he is on proving to you that not all magic is evil, he recognizes that it can easily be used as such." 

"And why is he so intent on proving that to me?" 

"That's for Merlin to tell you. We should leave. We have no more business here." 

They had left by dawn.


	10. Chapter 10

Once Merlin had made it abundantly clear that his people did not have to treat him the way that they had treated past kings, he found that they were extremely cooperative and trusting. He also found that they were more than willing to help get him up to speed on the people of the kingdom, who they were, what they did, and how the villages usually worked. It wasn't a rare thing for Merlin to stop by a local tavern for a drink and some conversation. It was a lot to take in within the two days that he had spent being king, but the people seemed to be very welcoming to the change. 

One person that Merlin had not gotten an opinion from was one of the people that he wanted it from the most. He hadn't seen Arthur since he had left Camelot, but he hadn't been expecting him, so he wasn't disappointed. He almost wished that he had a reason to be disappointed. It would have been better than the ghostly loneliness that constantly haunted him; a feeling that came from a combination of being separated and knowing that Arthur felt exactly the same way. 

He wasn't exactly trying to forget Arthur, but he was trying to ignore the fact that he wasn't there. 

However, that was getting more difficult by the minute. 

Specifically, the minute that Gaius showed up in his court, accompanied by a certain blond prince. 

It was all Merlin could do to stop himself from running towards both of them. However much he was enjoying being a friend to his people, he would much rather be back in Camelot with Arthur and Gaius. In some ways, getting the letter was the worst thing that had ever happened to him- in other ways, it was the best. 

Arthur didn't bother with the formalities, which simultaneously surprised and relieved him. He didn't exactly feel like going through it at that point. 

"Hello, Merlin." 

"Arthur."

Arthur gave Merlin a quick briefing on what had happpened since he left Camelot, and from the look in his eyes, Merlin gathered that Gaius thought that he was quite upset because of the princess's attack. He didn't blame Arthur for letting Gaius believe that, or for even being a bit upset. Once you got used to the idea of someone or something, having another change thrust upon you was difficult. Merlin knew that firsthand. 

Of course, there was a different look in his eyes when Arthur turned to Gaius and said, "Would you mind allowing me to speak to the king alone?" 

"Of course, Sire." Gaius left the hall. 

Merlin looked at Arthur for a moment before he stepped down from his place on the throne. Arthur watched him as he walked closer to him, and to Merlin's surpise, Arthur elected to wrap Merlin in his arms. 

Not that he was complaining. He heard Arthur whisper, "How are you holding up?" 

He replied, just as quietly. "Alright, I guess. But only because I haven't exactly been following the royal procedures very well." 

"It's your kingdom. Besides, what I taught you comes directly from my father. I would not be at all surprised if there were a few flaws." 

Merlin laughed at that. "That's true. I also don't think I'm nearly as strict as I would need to be to follow all of those rules."

The next thing that Arthur said was not something that Merlin was expecting. "Gaius said something about you trying to prove to me that not all magic is bad. Any idea what he meant by that?" 

Magic? When had that come up?

"Possibly. I hate to answer your question with a question, but why were you and Gaius talking about magic?" 

"When Katarina was attacked, Gaius figured out that magic had been used to do it, in Carlain. I didn't think you would want me leading a witch hunt through your kingdom less than three days after you were crowned." 

"That makes absolutely no sense. Feel free. In fact, if you catch the sorcerer, do me a favor and make sure that they die. That's not how magic should be used." 

"And what ways should magic be used in?" 

Merlin laughed. "That question is exactly why I'm trying to prove that not all magic is bad."

"I never said it was." 

"You have." 

"Another custom that seems to have been inherited from my father. I have no reason to be against the use of magic." 

"It would be quite ironic if you did." 

"How would it be ironic?"

"Are you aware of the number of times that I have saved your life using magic?" 

Arthur didn't seem surprised by the information that Merlin was a sorcerer. "How many?" 

"A few times a week, starting right before I became your servant." 

"Well, I suppose that means I owe you my life." 

"And here I am, stuck debating whether or not that's a good thing." 

"Well, I guess you can just tell me when you've decided whether you can tolerate me." Arthur spoke with a tone of voice that made Merlin completely sure that he was joking. 

"I don't know... That might take a while, and I kind of like having you around." 

That comment coaxed a laugh out of Arthur, but it quickly died as he remembered why he was standing in front of Merlin. 

"I should be going. Unless you'd like to join me." 

"Well, there is a rogue sorcerer in my kingdom. I think I'd better." 

The comment forced Arthur to laugh again, and this time it didn't die out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it, everyone! I hope the reveal wasn't too underwhelming for anyone. It seemed to me that Merlin's already had enough stress thrown at him.


End file.
